Patrick Walsh, CEO & Managing Partner, Withum

In an interview with Invest:, Patrick Walsh, CEO and managing partner at advisory and accounting firm Withum, discussed the firm’s technological advancements, outlook for the accounting profession, and its contribution to the New Jersey landscape. “Contributions can be measured in a couple of different ways, going beyond just profitability and financial success,” Walsh emphasized, highlighting Withum’s community focus and growth initiatives.

What have been the key contributions or impacts of your organization in New Jersey over the past year?

Contributions can be measured in a couple of different ways, going beyond just profitability and financial success, though that is important. We onboarded one of our largest new hire classes coming out of university this past year. We are proud of being able to continue to grow our practice and expand our footprint. We bolstered our existing footprint in the Philadelphia market by combining with a like-minded firm called BBD that focuses on not-for-profit organizations. Bringing that team on has helped us continue to grow in our industry specialization in the not-for-profit service area.

We define our contribution beyond just those measures, though. In terms of contributing to New Jersey, we are proud of our community focus. We make a major point as a firm to give back to the communities in which our clients and team members live. For decades, we have had something called Withum Week of Caring, where all our team members get together the week leading up to Thanksgiving and donate their time to various charities around the state and across the country. We have 23 offices in the U.S., five of which are in New Jersey. Each office sponsors multiple team member events in various New Jersey communities, giving us an opportunity to give back in a positive way. Having this collective impact nationally and globally through our India office’s efforts, also, speaks volumes about the culture we have and the values we possess as an organization.

What is the state of the accounting and advisory sector in New Jersey, and how has it evolved over the past few years?

New Jersey’s outlook for our profession mirrors the national outlook. Across the United States, fewer talented young people are going to college, and there are fewer young people in general. I think 2025 will be the first year with fewer children born than people turning 65. These demographics impact not just the accounting profession, but also college and executive college graduation rates. The war for talent isn’t going away anytime soon. Attracting the best talent with accounting degrees is crucial, so we want to become the employer of choice for students entering the workforce.

In the accounting profession, we need strong talent, but we also need cutting-edge technology. We need to maintain relevancy and have the technology to deliver the solutions our clients need. Balancing our investment in team members alongside technology is key to driving the firm’s success. Focusing specifically on the talent aspect, we’re proud of our unique team member attraction and retention efforts. For example, we cover 25% of childcare costs for our team members because childcare is expensive. We allow team members to invest in the firm like equity owners. We distinguish ourselves by investing in our team and offering opportunities others don’t. This helps us attract and retain the best. It’s great to bring in talent, but we don’t want to lose them, either. It’s a competitive environment. Combining these team member benefits with technology investments will keep us successful and grow both our firm and the New Jersey market.

How does Withum prioritize building strong relationships with current clients while also working to attract new ones?

You need to allocate time to do both. People think we’re in accounting and consulting, but we’re in the people business. Trust and relationships are crucial. Staying active in the market to attract new clients is possible by being thought leaders. World-class service to long-term client relationships drives word-of-mouth referrals, helping grow the firm. Growth is intentional, providing opportunities for the next generation. We’ve had 51 years of consecutive growth since 1974, which is a testament to our entrepreneurial spirit. We’re stewards of the firm, growing it for our team members’ success.

The accounting profession is highly trusted, and we take that seriously. Trust is the foundation when working with livelihoods, money and businesses. We invest in trust by delivering on promises and going above and beyond. It starts with our people — building trust so they perform at their best for our clients. Withum is an aggregation of the unique talents our diverse team brings daily. We can’t replicate that with a button or factory. Team members give their best in an environment of trust, where they believe we have their best interests in mind. Our clients benefit from that equation. We aim to make our people more successful and valuable, helping them advance their careers and achieve their goals. Our leadership team focuses on incremental progress, taking baby steps in the right direction over time. When you look back, you realize you’ve accomplished a lot.

What integrations have you implemented into your services to enhance client experience and improve operational efficiency?

We’ve always been a technology-forward firm. For over 50 years, we’ve invested more than our peers in technology. We created an Innovation Department with about 20 people globally, executing ideas from our 2,500 team members. We’ve linked disparate systems, automated manual processes and enabled systems to communicate through open API architecture. We can file simple tax returns without human intervention with the push of a button, a task that once took dozens of people days. 

On the assurance side, we use technology to analyze data, identify exceptions and ensure audits accurately represent what’s presented to regulators. These advancements, managed through our Innovation Department, remove repetitive tasks, automate them, and let our team focus on higher-level advisory work. No one wants to be a compliance accountant just putting numbers in boxes—it’s not fulfilling. People want to be valuable, and clients want to pay for value. Technology helps us deliver that value more efficiently every day.

What is your outlook in terms of data security and cybersecurity?

We have a world-class cybersecurity team focused externally on assisting clients as well as internally protecting our data and reputation. I’m not deeply technical, but we’re diligent in protecting clients’ data. We use multi-layered security, including multisource verification, and invest heavily in securing data and building our cybersecurity team. This ensures clients have the resources to protect their data. 

Data is a goldmine for the accounting profession, valuable to both criminals and us for insights. We’re just starting to explore this. We’ve hired data scientists to analyze data from over 1,000 clients, examining trends and risks across industries and determining how to communicate these insights. The challenge is collecting, organizing, analyzing and presenting data in a way that’s valuable and relevant to clients and our team. We’ve built a data lake to consolidate and protect data effectively. With AI and generative AI rising, we’re cautious about the potential to expose sensitive client information. So, all work is done in a secure, ring-fenced environment, protected from external access.

What is your outlook not only for Withum in New Jersey, but for the entire accounting space in the next half of the decade?

Looking forward half a decade is challenging, as things change rapidly. The clear trend in our profession is consolidation, with firms combining at a rapid pace. A significant problem is the lack of talent entering the profession and fewer students graduating. However, the accounting profession will continue to serve as a trusted advisor to the business community. Building and maintaining trust and transparency will allow the profession and our firm to succeed. Fewer people will be needed, leverage models will change, and technology will become increasingly relevant as generative AI integrates into our tools. The key will be maximizing the use of these tools.

I firmly believe generative AI won’t replace knowledge-based professions, like accounting or law, despite what some may claim. Instead, firms that master and effectively use AI will thrive, while those that resist it will struggle. 

We’ve always been thought leaders in technology, investing considerable dollars in these tools since our founding. This positions us well to capitalize on changes. Disruption, while unsettling to some, represents opportunity for us. It’s a chance to guide clients through uncertainty, leveraging trust and well-trained teams. If we stay positioned correctly, we’ll remain a successful firm for the next five, 10, and many more years to come.